Grove Announces his Resignation

 Grove, who took a one-year sabbatical in 2001 but has been at the school since 1989, said the thought of calling it quits never crossed his mind before now.

"Every year I think you are dealt a hand of cards that you may have to fold at times," he said. "Part of that is, you see the bright spots and you strive to reach the top so there are times where you say there is nothing we can do that works. You can be playing against a guy that always pulls that ace and will beat you right at the closing moments or whenever that may be, but you always see that next opportunity to reach the top. And that competition keeps you involved."

He was also asked if his decision had anything to do with the three critical letters that appeared in The Review this past season.

"For me giving up when things get tough is not an option," Grove said. "In fact, probably more so the other way. I tend to fight even tougher, and I try to instill that in the kids as well."

While the Mounts haven't been stellar  the past few seasons, Grove has produced six winning seasons and has a .500 or better record against six of the eight teams the Mounts face year in and year out, including Cocalico (7-4), E-town (10-7), Garden Spot (7-7), Lebanon (8-7), Solanco (7-7-1) and Warwick (10-6-1). The only two teams that have gotten the better of his squads are Manheim Central and Conestoga Valley, but he is one of the few coaches in the last 15 years to beat Manheim Central at least twice.

So deserved or not, he was asked how he handles the criticism he sometimes receives.

"Perseverance in the face of adversity, focus on the next season, not the past," he said. "That's a big thing. Also, I got this quote from somebody a while ago. It goes, 'You want to give time to the improvement of yourself, therefore you shouldn't have any time to criticize others.' I think that's one thing I've always been able to do is look at criticism and try to do- instead of being critical of others or other situations. If people reflect on themselves, they don't have time to be critical of others."

Grove came to Ephrata back in 1989 after spending 11 years as a teacher and coach in football and wrestling at Lampeter-Strasburg High School. Although his coaching career will come to an end after his 30th season, Grove will remain on as an assistant principal at Ephrata High School.

He was asked if he ever thought he'd have such a long career in both teaching and athletics.

"I don't know anything other than schools, being in administration and teaching, and coaching," he said. "My expectations have always been that way and Ephrata brought me on board, and it was a family situation. The best thing is you take one year at a time, and the other part of it is we have promising student-athletes. As long as you see that, it keeps you into next year.

"The family environment, the love of kids, coaches, the respect from the kids is what has kept me here so long," he continued. "When I sent my (resignation) letter in, I wrote down, 'Above all else, I hope to leave with my players my passion for the game, my deep-seeded values of the trust, loyalty, dedication, discipline and sportsmanship it takes to be a true student athlete...to be a successful human being.'"

Grove said he considers his greatest accomplishments at Ephrata to have been both on the field and in the classroom.

"As I said, part of it is respect I've gotten from the players, teaching for the future and helping student-athletes get to the next level whether it's a job, college or whatever... I think that's always been one of my stronger attributes," he said. "The other thing is one year I had kids evaluate us, and we've now been doing it for the last four years or so, but, it was in the 2002 season, and I took down what one kid said. He said, 'football has become my second family. I play for the coaching staff. They teach us the game of football and about life. But most importantly I play football because I'm blessed with the privilege to be able to play this game. I play football because it is not just a game. It's a way of life.'

"I think that's pretty much to heart how we as a coaching staff try to be.... to always be fair... when you talk about what I want to be remembered as.... And as a person you can trust."

Following next season, Grove said he'll dedicate a lot of his free time to his family.

"A lot of it is going to involve them," he said. "My daughters will be in 10th grade and 8th grade after next season. They are involved with dance, sports, gymnastics....They are very busy. During the season they are accustomed to being busy and me not being around as much. They understand that but I kind of told them way back that there will be a time when I'll be there. And that's part of this decision. Going out 10-0 sometimes is easier, and I think that's another reason to say it upfront. I can come into the season and say, 'hey, no holds barred, we got to go.'"

And that's how he intends to spend his last season at the helm. With a promising team that returns at least eight starters on both sides of the ball, including sensational quarterback Blake Crowther, Grove has a decent chance to go out on top.

"We need more kids with potential because we have about eight kids right now that I can sit down and say I know what they can do because they all played last year," he said. "The wideouts are all back and there are some quality kids there. We are OK in the backfield but I have just three, my quarterback, fullback and running back. I need somebody to come in and step up. But potentially it is there that we could be a pretty decent team. We just need to try hard always and play hard, smart and together. And I'm hoping that senior team next year can bring that to the table."